Cranberry Orange Cheesecake Bars
December 22, 2024These perfectly sweet Cranberry Orange Cheesecake Bars are the best ending to any Holiday meal.
Equipment
- 1 small casserole or baking dish 8x8 inch or 6x9 inch
- foil paper
- microplane for zest
- hand or stand mixer
Ingredients
Cranberry Orange Cheesecake Bars
- 1 cup graham cracker crumbs or 5 graham crackers
- 1/2 cup + 1 tbsp sugar
- 4 tbsp butter melted
- 1 1/2 cup cranberries fresh
- 1/2 whole orange, fresh juice of, fresh
- 1 tbsp orange zest
- 2 8oz cream cheese, regular block style
- 2 eggs
Sugared cranberries (optional)
- 1/8 cup water
- 1/2 cup granulated white sugar divided (1/4 cup for syrup and 1/4 cup for dusting)
- 1/2 cup cranberries fresh
Instructions
Cranberry Orange Cheesecake Bars
- Preheat oven to 325ºF.
- Start by crushing enough graham crackers to make 1 cup of crumbs. It's about 4-5 crackers. I place them in a zip type bag and crush them with a rolling pin. Place crumbs and 1 tbsp of sugar in a small bowl, set aside.
- Now line a small, 8x8 inch casserole dish ( I used a 6x9") with foil paper. Ensure there is excess foil paper over the rim of the baking dish. The dish is now ready for baking the breadcrumb crust.
- Melt 4 tbsp of butter and add to bowl with graham cracker crumbs and 1 tablespoon of sugar. Mix well with a spoon until all of the crumbs are covered in butter.
- Now add cracker/butter mixture to the foil covered casserole and press mixture onto the bottom of the casserole dish. The crust should cover the bottom of the baking dish evenly.
- Bake for 10 minutes.
- Beat cream cheese, orange juice, remaining sugar and zest with a hand mixer or stand type mixer. Beat until everything is blended. Now it's time to add the eggs.
- Add 1 egg at a time, and mix on low just until blended. Repeat for second egg. Now gently fold in cranberries and pour the mixture into the graham cracker crust. Spread evenly onto the crust and even out with a small spatula.
- Bake about 35-40 minutes. When you remove it from the oven, the middle maybe a little jiggly, that is okay as long the rest of the cheesecake is set. Remove from oven and allow to completely cool. Once cooled, refrigerate for minimum of 4 hours.
- TIP FOR CUTTING THE BARS CLEANLY: You will quickly notice on the first cut, that there will be cream cheese filling and crumbs on the knife. This quick tip will provide for cleaner edges. Run cutting knife under hot water for a few seconds. Wipe the knife dry and make the first cut. With a paper towel, wipe excess cream cheese and crumbs off and make the second cut. Repeat until all the bars are cut.
- After the Cranberry Orange Cheesecake bars have been refrigerated and set, it's time to cut into bars. Gently remove the cake with the excess foil, like handles. Place on cutting surface and carefully peel foil down from sides. Cut into 8 large bars or 12 smaller ones.
- Optional: Garnish with the sugared cranberries on top.
Sugared Cranberries*
- Use a small, nonstick skillet. Add 1/8 cup water and 1/4 cup sugar and allow the sugar to dissolve.
- Once the sugar is dissolved, stir in the fresh cranberries and remove from the heat. Allow the cranberries to steep in the sugar and water mixture for 10 minutes.
- Remove the cranberries with a slotted spoon and place them on a cookie rack to dry, ensuring they are separated. (If you don't have a cookie rack, use parchment paper or a silicon mat.)
- Allow the cranberries to cool and harden for about 1 hour.
- Once cooled, roll the cranberries in the remaining sugar and allow to rest for an additional hour.
- Garnish each cheesecake bar with the sugared cranberries.
Notes
How to Store, Freeze, and thaw my Cranberry Orange Cheesecake Bars
So now you have baked these scrumptious cheesecake bars, and you want to save some for the rest of the week or a rainy day. They can be refrigerated for up to 4 days if they last that long! I like to freeze them in individual portions in the freezer and thaw them as needed. However, be sure to freeze them without any garnishes. There are two ways of freezing them: wrap them individually with waxed paper and place them in a container or a large zip-type bag. The second method is to freeze the precut bars on a small rimmed baking sheet and, once frozen, place them in a container or zip-type bag. Both work well. These bars can be frozen for up to 4 months. The thaw time is about 30 minutes on the counter or about 2 hours in the fridge. The thaw time is about 30 minutes on the counter or about 2 hours in the fridge.*Sugared Cranberries adapted from Boston Girl Bakes.
Nutrition
Serving: 1squareCalories: 261kcal
Nutritional information is calculated online and should be used as a guide.
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